Vril Ya::: The Hidden Power
by Morgothrond
Summary: Based off a RPG sessions. The half orc, Helmut Grunger, along with his gnome and drow companion, will face the obliteration of the empire of light: Turania; at the hands of rebels and the other seven kingdoms of darkness. Please Review.
1. Chapter 1

_By a route obscure and lonely,Haunted by ill angels only,Where an Eidolon, named Night,On a black throne reigns upright,I have reached these lands but newlyFrom an ultimate dim Thule —From a wild weird clime, that lieth, sublime,_

_Out of Space — out of Time_

**The chapter one **

**At the temple of Vril - Ya**

Helmut peeked over the edge of the cliff on his left. He admired the enormous _Amirtha Gangai_ river snake its way through the Yellow Plains. Few times during his journey, he had the opportunity to admire something more than the monotone flat horizon of the extensive plain;. now he could not but look over the extensive silver band as it ran between the walls of the deep ravine to his left, always to his left, west. Helmut and his two companions rode by the river heading south. Seen from afar, they were nothing but three hooded travelers galloping their way from the north, and, in Helmut's opinion, not fast enough. A keener observer might surprisingly notice the state of the horses: they seemed about to collapse; such observer might also wonder at the ragged and tattered state of the traveler's cloaks and outfits; at the wobbly state of their posture on top of their steeds that contrasted with the stern effort that they seemed to imbue on their reins to extract even more speed out of the beasts. And an even keener observer might frown upon the punishment the horses were under when no chase or persecution was to be found.

Helmut felt the exhaustion on his horse and raised his head to look ahead. The other two horses were snorting and blowing through mouth and nostril. No danger was in sight, although tiredness was getting them under their rider's forced galloping on the yellow grass. In front of the riders, the trail they were following started to veer away from the cliffs to their left, and slowly began to rise, leading to a wide and tall hillock, situated within sight of the river through which the wide river ran. Some nights before, shortly before the woods horror, the three companions had discussed whether the hill held any importance and decided to make a first exploration spot of it. For some unknown reason, it was an important place of power, according to a map they stole from the order of Ix.

So the riders leaned harder on their horses as they saw the elevation, pushing the animals beyond their exertion; from their mouths came foam and loud snorting noises. But the horses held, and did not waver, but increased speed instead. There was no need to review their maps again since the hill was the only elevated feature of the Yellow Plains.

They had rested the animals only a couple of times during their journey, Helmut remembered as they neared the hill;, one of those times had been in the middle of the forest right over the southern border of the empire, before the Yellow Plains stretched to welcome them. A chill ran through Helmut's spine, as he tried his best not to reminisce the Woodland horrors; he had attempted to persuade his companions not to go into _Lavondiss,_ but to no avail. Those two girls even ignored his recollection of the whole spectrum of faiths and beliefs from different regions of Turania, all of which held the forest of Lavondiss as being _strega lamia__**, **_or being cursed... damned. Later on, all three of them had joined the spectrum of faiths and beliefs that held Lavondiss as _strega lamia_.

Helmut felt the increasing pressure within him, the sense of urgency, as he began to ride up the hillock. The woods were behind, no use in thinking about them now; the inn where they made their first stop was also behind. That urgency within him demanded that he extracted the most speed out of his horse. Helmut spurred his mount while shaking the reins and yelling with impatience to his companions, bidding them to do the same. The summit of the hillock was rapidly approaching.


	2. Chapter 2

**II**

The trip had begun some days before; at sunset of some seemingly far away day now, some day detached from their existence, their reality. The riders thundered their way through communities, farms and hamlets, until they sped past the last of the prosperous and more civilized settlements; they sped like purple shadows in the night. They drew the looks and attention of some of the less than respectable folks of the towns and villages that were out in the night air. Some of those looks were more fearful than threatening, for it was known the iron hand grip by which the Turanian imperial forces imposed the light of the _Imperium._ It was not common place to behold three hooded riders wearing the imperial purple and gold crest, without even stopping for beer, women or lodging, which soldiers frequently took from the townsfolk without paying for them, of course.

Helmut frowned upon these imperial soldiers, most of the bulk of the army behaved like so; because they take for granted that the only payment soldiers should give to civilians is the protection and imposition of the imperial law and order to protect the last bastion of civilization against the coming tides of madness from the other kingdoms. Even so, imperial troops were respected and some might say even loved. No single thing is denied to the servants of the Emperor; for he is, by His own conviction, servant of His vassals as well. Helmut believed and admired the Emperor because of that conviction; he loved Him from the very core of his soul.

The riders had made their first stop at seeing the sun rise on what would be their second day of journeying under a grey shadowy sky. They brought their horses to a halt near an inn they spotted next to the main imperial road. At that time, Helmut was still reluctant to accept his two assigned companions enough to share a table with them; and so he went in to the inn most to his displeasure, and ready to skulk in a table by some darkened corner. The building had three stories; its facade was red painted wood; and it had an attached small stable in which Helmut could see a hallway connecting the two structures. The interior, of course, was a dump. It stank of beer and sweat, the floor was covered in sawdust and wood shaving, a cheap trick to save cleaning time from all sorts of liquids. The place was nothing like the inns in the city of Turania, with its polished marble floors and scented table decorations.

The time at the inn had gone without incidents. Aside from a couple of local drunkards and a small, curious old man that fired endless questions to the riders, there had been no problems. It had been a very good first step. They fed on Imperial coin for their own soldier pay would have barely bought them a pea soup and a mug of barley beer for the three of them. On their travel, Helmut had already observed with disgust how these traders and dealers in goods over priced their wares; the farther from they were from the capital, the more expensive things got in the lands where the fist of the empire did not have a good grip, where its light did not diffuse the dark. Helmut would have to report this, and would have to make sure to send an armed garrison escorting an imperial accountant to settle on these lands. Of course, he had to get back to the capital alive, first.

At the inn, his companions had ordered a steamed ham and the house wine; all accompanied by black olives, dry cheese and fresh baked bread. All of which they devoured like true orcs; one of them in particular seemed to have a fierce appetite: little Krista; she had such a hunger that made Helmut smile at seeing her small round cheeks bloat with every mouthful, and her tiny pointy ears bob up and down with each bite. Helmut guessed that moment was when he had started to like "the midget" as he had taken up to calling her; even though she made furious tantrums every now and then about her not being a midget human, but a gnome. A very irritable one at that, had thought Helmut, not only in one occasion.

Helmut had hopes that Krista Greenmoss deserved all the respect she seemed to inspire in the imperial soldiers; they all talked to her with the uttermost honourable tone Helmut had heard among even the grunts. Still, he had found it hard to believe. He had seen how even at the tower of the order of Ix, the initiates in the _traditione streghana_ regarded her with admiration. But on the other hand, he still had a fresh memory of how a captain master of arms smiled with mockery and disdain in his eyes when her little figure of not much than one and a half meters tall was announced to be one of Helmut's companions.

He felt cheated then; how was he supposed to go in to blood, steel and darkness and comeback unscathed, bearing a light to shun all other lights in the world if that little rat was hanging from his cloak all the time? Could they not have picked at least someone with the height of an adult humanoid? as it turned out, the midget was fine; and during their first meal together at the inn, watching her gulp huge chunks of steamed ham, Helmut felt akin to her, though he some what knew that when saw more than meets the eye; she gave the impression of knowing more about this infernal search than she let out.

So, instead of brewing and steaming in mistrusts, Helmut had attempted to distract himself by killing a huge amount of flies, though not a portion of how many flooded the place; while at the same time eating large mouthfuls of ham, cheese and bread, drowning them with rice water. Not beer; he would never allow himself such indulgencies. He could not. The risk of losing his mind to the inheritance in his blood had always been too near, and it would be insanity to add intoxicating substances in to the mix. As he ate, an elderly human had come up to him. At first, Helmut dismissed the old man's questions, and even had attempted to dissuade him of pursuing his inquiries.

The old man seemed very interested on why were the travellers visiting the old inn by the imperial road so far south from the capital, where the action was. He had heard the rumours of rebellion and encroaching of borders from the other seven kingdoms and nothing of interest was happening in the south; so why were they there? the old man kept asking. Helmut, patiently and without using the craft, had tried his best to impress on him that it was not a visit for any affair of the small nearby communities; he had told him time and again that they were merely refreshing and getting the horses rubbed down and rested. the old man was not satisfied. Amongst endless questions he had tried to convince Helmut to take his grandson as squire. "He'd serve you well m'lud, he's a stubborn boy, but strong and able" he had said one too many times, so Helmut had sized the boy up. It was a small lad of about fifteen springs, that apparently had nothing interesting to look at except the interior of the old man's robe, which he did not let go, through the entire time. Grandpa was very insisting on taking his lad to be instructed ads an imperial soldier, for apparently, the man had cleverly noticed the colours the companions bore, though they had tried to hide them beneath stained dusty coloured travelling robes.

Only when he old man had gone too far and tugged at Helmut's robe was when he finally abated; he had seen what was beneath the hood for it slipped down halfway to his neck and revealed his features, his fangs, the greyish tone of his skin, and his half-blood that was impossible to hide in plain sight. Those piercing small, black eyes that seemed to pierce with a sharp sparkle, that huge body mass, muscular neck and arms; it only spoke of one thing, a thing that walked always hand in hand with scimitar curved blades and horrors told village after village: orcs.

At that moment, Helmut had seen the old man pass a bitter gulp, stare at him for just a second, turn and exit the establishment without looking back. The boy looked back however. Perhaps that should have been a warning sign; one that Helmut ignored. He smiled bitterly and tired, then he looked upon his companions, they had not been aware of any of it. "This is better", thought the half-orc. It's better to fear the big bad monster, to avoid him and only look at him indirectly. Helmut preferred loneliness, the hood over the eyes; to hide and be hidden, to forget his blood an ascendancy; the mix that had doomed him to struggle twice as hard as any other being. To be half human demanded that he'd be more than any human; and to be half orc demanded him to be better than any orc; but never really belong to either race, always shun by both heritages.

The imperial order of ix had been his only escape from the wilderness without home; an escape from roaming the wilds, sleeping on cold stone by fires that do not provide warmth. Though that particular day at the inn, his inheritance had allowed him to keep on swatting flies and stuffing his mouth with ham and cheese, without any other curious onlooker to pester him or the two girls he was with.

A little after sun up; they had made sure the horses were well rested, scrubbed, oiled and rubbed; once this was done; they left, without a sound but the gold coind tinlking in the stable boy's hands. Only the gallop and breathing of their horses could be heard on the road when they sped southwards.


	3. Chapter 3

**III**

The sound of horses neighing brought him back to the road ascending and the coming hillock. The cleft on his left was left behind, hiding he strenuous _Amirtha Gangai_ behind within its stone walls. Helmut gave a sudden tug on his horse's reins just in time to avoid a boulder the size of which would have not only broke his horse's legs, but also sent him sprawling on the yellos grass. He cursed himself for his own foolish distraction. He spurred his mount with renewed strenght and kept on riding.

Morning was bright and a clear sky above. The night terror and the half light before the day truly breaks were behind now. A pale sun bathed the landscape with a pale yellowish colouring, sterile light as the hopes are sterile of those who dwell outside the light of the _imperiuum_, the true and only light left in the world. The charge these three riders bore on their very souls was ob the absolute essence for the survival of that light; The Emperor himself had signed the missives that were given to them in sealed parchment. Helmut had been so full of what he thought of as an undeserved pride, a charity pride truly for what he had he ever done for the empire to deserve such an honour? He'd fix that, he would make sure he deserved every ink The Emperor used on him. So he clanched his teeth and stenghted his resolve: the horses must hold; for the light, for the peace and order the empire brings. For the order of Ix, they had to hold.

They rode at a gallop up the hillock and found an enourmous boulder crowning the elevation, like the pennant of some elder green giant, whose head was visible amongst the yellow grass of the plains. They slowed their horses down almost to a stop directing them behind the boulder and stopped full once there. Helmut looked around. The hill was very tall, an excellent vantage point over the grasslands around. He breathed in.

On the horizon, he thought he saw the silver line that was the _Amirtha Gangai_ sparkling under the sun. The mythic river curved in the distance, all the way from his left to the south in front of him, and while admiring the might of the river, he heard a bird whistle. A strange but familiar bird whistle. He turned his head to observe Ilum, his other companion on the journey. She had not made a sound or a comment since the woods horror. She whistled the strange bird call again while lifting a glove covered hand southwards, downhill. Helmut followed his companion's gesture, and was taken aback at what he saw. At the bottom of the slanted surface of the hill, sprang a very thick grove; the trees were arranged in a circular fashion in a hollow by the hill's foot. The lush and greenness of the grove seemed out of place amongst the yellowish colour of the grassy plains. There were bit elms, green and healthy with hube trunks covered in gnarled gray bark.

The grove seemed to cover the entrance of a cave at the side of the hill. Helmut felt his spirit rise for, possibly and with God Enkil at his side, the Emperor's missive could begin there, in and among those thick trees that rose so obviously unnatural. This apparent obviousness caused Helmut's hopes to sink again. What can possibly be there among the trees when its location was as apparent to everyone that if there was a ruin or a cave, its contents would not be already looted?

Helmut heard a careless laughter at his side that took him out of his thoughts. He turned to his left and saw Krista Greenmoss came up from behind him, still riding her horse. Apparently, the midget found that place somewhat amusing. He then surveyed Ilum on his right, still keeping her silence after the woodland horror, except for the bird call she made to draw the companion's attention in to the grove below; Helmut looked at her slender figure, delicate elven skin on armes accustomed to the weight of the sword; her height being almost as his own still amazed him and attracted him on equal intensity for all elves he knew were shorter and more fragile looking than Ilum; Still, she bore with elegance her every detail: her long elvish ears, her strenght, her bluish skin, her piercing and disturbingly red eyes, her light and melodious voice and specially, the sacred symbol of the god that her order followed. Yes, there was power in Ilum, a deep and ancient power. Helmut would do right to remember it.

The half orc still attributed Ilum's silence to the events on the _Lavondiss_ woods, even he felt stil la bit shamed to the root about it. He kept on observing his elven companion, he still could not figure her out, or how to get her out of her silence, she had been quite chatty before the woods. But of course, the fact remained that what happened on _Lavondiss _might send waves of repercusion that could even bring her order to its knees. But for the moment, Helmut had to find a way for her to focus on the task at hand. Her days as a paladin were behind, she now was part of the Imperiuum pacification effort.

"Finally" saud Krista, still laughinf softly. "This riding horse thing does not agree with me at all" she continued as she rose from her modified stirrups that allowed her to plant her small legs firmly on the saddle. "Here we can definitely make a start" she added as she stretched her back and arms. She tried to sound convincing, even hopeful for what they had to find. But for what Orsic, _Grandmaster_ of the _Order of Ix_ had told her, her hopes diminished with every step taken southwards. At the very least, she did not expect the thing to be found so easily as the Emperor presumed.

They had been gioven the order to exhaust every resource available, remembered Krista, but the nature of the object that they had to look for had only been known to Orsic, and one or two high ranking members of the _order of Ix_. So Krista had done only what was natural; she pestered Orsic to no end until the old mage gave up some of the knowledge he possesed. "This thing has to be found" Orsic had told her, "Even at the cost of you or your companion's lives." This had not made Krista the happiest of gnomes, and she was dangerous when she was not being the happiest of gnomes. She hadn't been the happiest of gnomes from the time she stood there, listening to the frowning old man until this very moment. Well, she kind of got close to being the happiest of gnomes the other day at the inn, when Helmut and her shared a very tasty ham. In any case, she had never liked the way the Grandmaster of her order mixed and managed Order's affairs with Empire's politics. The _Tradicione Stregheria _was the art of _Aradia_, daughter of the Godess who came to the world bearing the mighty gift of magic; and it was certainly not an instrument of imposition, deterrence or political debate. Krista was convinced that in the other six realms of the one and only world, the different coventants and orders of magic would agree with her. If she could only reach out to them and be sure of it without it being considered treason... She swore to herself that once this wild goosechase was over, she would seek out the six _Towers of Magic of Ix _on all realms and unite them under one view. A lofty goal that would made her the most definitely happiest gnome on the world.

Helmut dismounted. His weight fell on the grassy making the earth tremble under his heavy leather and steel boots and took Krista out of her thoughts. The half orc was a very thick figure indeed. Over two meters high, greyish skin, hard features that framed a couple of tusks that protruded from his mouth only a bit. He licked his lips with a bluish tongue while observing the grove below, as if tasting a future mouthful of meat. Helmut signaled his companions to dismount and join him on the edge of the hill. "Are you two coming, or you plan on leaving me standing here until God Enkil returns to give you leave? Said the half breed with a playful smile. Krista and Ilum dismounted with one graceful movement and stepped forward to join him. "Look here, you dumb imitation of a mage," The small figure of Krista said with a challenging tone of voice, "respect your elders in the order, that means me, not her" she added pointing to Ilum, "and if in such a hurry, lead the way down. Though I believe we must leave the horses here." She then walked her horse behind the boulder, but stopped dry upon seeing her elven companion remove her hood and glare at the hollow below; Ilum had a worried look on her face, and she was staring intently as if to pierce the foliage of the trees; her eyes became slits, as if the pale morning light hurt her. Even half opened, it was disturbing staring in to her eyes and see the fiery red colour without pupils contrasting the blue on her skin.

Helmut and Krista stood very still, alert to the elf`s every movement. She was not just any elf. She came from the underground kind. "A deep elf" thought Krista, remembering legend and myths of that people. A chill ran down her spine. It was said that they all could turn in to hideous many legged monsters. She tired her best to not picture Ilum as a black hairy spider, and in doing so she giggled at picturing her exactly like that.. Ilum had seen something below, and when the eyes of an elf spot someting, you better be sure it is there. Kriste immediately threw herself down to the ground and Helmut followed suit. They both observed the elf. Ilum was moving now, towards them. "There is devilry here" she said, "on them, they stink of it" she finished and led the gaze of their companions to the very spot she meant, right between two huge tree trunks among the grove, was the entrance to a cave, there sere several figures moving in the trees near it.

At a second careful loo, Helmut could see that the gaping maw of darkness was no cave at all; the walls seem too symmetrical, and there were columns and debris all around. "Who do you mean elf?" growled Helmut while staring at the foot of the hill. "There, among the trees, can see nine or ten of them. But there are most likely more of them. Some of them already went in to the temple, for that is what the cave is, look at the carvings on the walls!" Ilum said, turning her stare in to Krista Greenmoss eyes, as if silently asking her if she was aware of what those ruins were. Helmut made an effort to catch a glimpse of the figures shadowed by the trees and pay no attention to Ilum's silent questioning the gnome. "Are those ruins? so that's why the map had this place marked? What in the name of Enkil are we looking for in old ruins of temples?" He finished his question addressed at Ilum. The elf jumped at the orc directly questioning her. Be it half orc or full orc, they are all the same evil things. She shaked her head. "That's all I know, but the informants of my order that are planted in the imperiuum tell tales. They assure our high priest that this whole endeavour is some sort of scheme concocted by the order of _Ix _along with the Emperor, with less than noble intentions."

Krista was trying her best effort at a nonchalant attitude, failing terribly. Ilum never took her eyes off the small round violet eyes of the gnome. "I need to know our exact orders, small one, and only you conferred with Orsic and the Emperor about all this. The maps, letters and instructions were given to your care, so it is time you unveil the secrecy, it is no more time for it". Krista looked surprised and taken aback. Her round eyes opened by inches to appear big purple plates on her face. "Is this deal involves murder, you creatures can go on without me, or work under my orders and conditions, for the divine law must be observed at all times." Helmut immediately glared and growled at the elf woman. His anger rose and the imperial pride flowed trough his face. "She-elf, you cannot go against direct orders from the Emperor..." he started in a menacing voice; then fell silence as awe took him at seeing the snake like fast movement of Ilum. She reached for her double bladed longsword, and in a flas, she had the business end of it touching the half orc's lips. He felt the cold tip of the steel.

Blue tempered steel from the dwarven mountains, the double bladed sword has always been a distinctive symbol of the priesthood of Innana, and her armed paladins. "Do not dare to tell me what I can or cannot do, orc." She said this last word with as much contempt as she could muster. "My work in the world is the work of the Godess, not of some Emperor, so thread carefully and choose your next words wisely". At seeing this, Krista, standing between the two companions, began to tear up; Her eyes became watery and a dread was upon her. "No, Ilum, wait, put that thing away 'cause it looks it may put someone's eye out" She placed her hand on Ilum's blade and began to lower it. "I was planning on let you all in, but I first I had to make sure you were who you claim to be, and I was hoping for the right time, you see... its just,... " The gnome continued babbling while playing with her adorned staff and her eyes darted from one place to another, every tinker, whistle and bell she had attached to her raggedy outfit was tinlking and her free hand played with a couple of bird's skulls she had hanged around her waist, next to the small bags of ingredients and components necessary for her art. "...its just... eh, they told me not to tell you.. and eh... they said I was in charge... and, and, that it didn't matter if we all died, but I said, "look here mister! whaddaya mean by someone dies, i don't like those tales·, and I don't care what the _scepter of Vril ya_ does for..." At this, Krista immediately put both of her hands to her mouth, letting her small adorned staff fall to the ground tinkling with bells.

Helmut slapped the blade of Ilum's sword away with a strenght that made the elf almost spin. He then stroked the little gnome's hair with a massive dark claw of a hand while offering his most comforting smile showing all fangs and tusks; his face hard features softened for a brief moment. His own wooden staff hanged from his back as he bent down to speak to Krista in the eye. "Be calm midget, do not cry. You are not betraying any secret or any one person. We are all on the same side here; the elf just wants to make sure we do not use means opposed to the beliefs of her order, it is important for them to fulfill the will of Innana at all times, am I correct Ilum?" He asked the elf not taking his eyes off Krista, but infusing in to his voice a veiled menace. Helmut might not be as fast as the elf with weapons, and he knew it, so his left hand slowly slided down to his own belt, looking for his small ingredient bags. Illum nodded with a serene gesture. Krista smiled, and relaxed. She dried big round tears from her cheeks and immediately felt light-hearted and delighted to see they were all friends now. It was hard for Krista to smile after the last three days, specially after the horror on the woods. In fact, once she thought about it, it was hard for her to smile after all she'd been through to get to where she was now. That did not mean she sould stop trying.

Wiping her eyes and cheeks, Krista remembered her days before the magic tower and the order of _Ix; _She had been born under the Greenmoss house under the eastern mountains and grew up in his family's state; but on being born under that clan, she had indivertibly inherited a feud, as all newborn gnomes do, for which they had not guilt at all except having a certain cast surname from the elder days: Underwood, Greenmoss, Coveburrow, Stonecutter; it did not matter where your affections lie, if you had one of these cast names, you were destined to have enemies amongst the rest of the gnomic population for the rest of your life. The Greenmoss clan was nder heavy threats by the time she was an infant, and her family decided to move her out of harm's way by letting her out in to the world, exiled from the underground realms. In an instant, Krista saw her life pass before her eyes; she saw all the hard moments and soft joys alike she had to endure in order to reach her goal of gaining acceptance at the Magic Tower of the order of _Ix._ Her inborn talent for the arts wa never a problem, she had shown very early feats of amazing power, and she was endowed with a hunger and joy of practicing the magic arts that come too well to all members of her race. Sometimes too well, Krista had thought on more than one occasion; and she also had seen and disapproved the lack of seriousness in which most gnomes squandered the craft. "No Ilum," Krista said to the elf once her tears were dry. "This does not suppose to involve any murdering or killing, though it is dangrous," she sighed and continued, "Se hunt for a most devious and powerful artifact; some sort of staff or scepter, that belonged to am out of control mage that inhabited these parts around the time the Godess gave us her daughter to inherit the arts. I do not know what the order of _Ix_ wants with it, but I am convinced this is a suggestion of the Order to the Emperor as means to end the threats of the six realms and the inner threat of dissension; and not, as you say, for less than noble purposes".


	4. Chapter 4

**III**

The sound of horses neighing brought him back to the road ascending and the coming hillock. The cleft on his left was left behind, hiding he strenuous _Amirtha Gangai_ behind within its stone walls. Helmut gave a sudden tug on his horse's reins just in time to avoid a boulder the size of which would have not only broke his horse's legs, but also sent him sprawling on the yellos grass. He cursed himself for his own foolish distraction. He spurred his mount with renewed strenght and kept on riding.

Morning was bright and a clear sky above. The night terror and the half light before the day truly breaks were behind now. A pale sun bathed the landscape with a pale yellowish colouring, sterile light as the hopes are sterile of those who dwell outside the light of the _imperiuum_, the true and only light left in the world. The charge these three riders bore on their very souls was ob the absolute essence for the survival of that light; The Emperor himself had signed the missives that were given to them in sealed parchment. Helmut had been so full of what he thought of as an undeserved pride, a charity pride truly for what he had he ever done for the empire to deserve such an honour? He'd fix that, he would make sure he deserved every ink The Emperor used on him. So he clanched his teeth and stenghted his resolve: the horses must hold; for the light, for the peace and order the empire brings. For the order of Ix, they had to hold.

They rode at a gallop up the hillock and found an enourmous boulder crowning the elevation, like the pennant of some elder green giant, whose head was visible amongst the yellow grass of the plains. They slowed their horses down almost to a stop directing them behind the boulder and stopped full once there. Helmut looked around. The hill was very tall, an excellent vantage point over the grasslands around. He breathed in.

On the horizon, he thought he saw the silver line that was the _Amirtha Gangai_ sparkling under the sun. The mythic river curved in the distance, all the way from his left to the south in front of him, and while admiring the might of the river, he heard a bird whistle. A strange but familiar bird whistle. He turned his head to observe Ilum, his other companion on the journey. She had not made a sound or a comment since the woods horror. She whistled the strange bird call again while lifting a glove covered hand southwards, downhill. Helmut followed his companion's gesture, and was taken aback at what he saw. At the bottom of the slanted surface of the hill, sprang a very thick grove; the trees were arranged in a circular fashion in a hollow by the hill's foot. The lush and greenness of the grove seemed out of place amongst the yellowish colour of the grassy plains. There were bit elms, green and healthy with hube trunks covered in gnarled gray bark.

The grove seemed to cover the entrance of a cave at the side of the hill. Helmut felt his spirit rise for, possibly and with God Enkil at his side, the Emperor's missive could begin there, in and among those thick trees that rose so obviously unnatural. This apparent obviousness caused Helmut's hopes to sink again. What can possibly be there among the trees when its location was as apparent to everyone that if there was a ruin or a cave, its contents would not be already looted?

Helmut heard a careless laughter at his side that took him out of his thoughts. He turned to his left and saw Krista Greenmoss came up from behind him, still riding her horse. Apparently, the midget found that place somewhat amusing. He then surveyed Ilum on his right, still keeping her silence after the woodland horror, except for the bird call she made to draw the companion's attention in to the grove below; Helmut looked at her slender figure, delicate elven skin on armes accustomed to the weight of the sword; her height being almost as his own still amazed him and attracted him on equal intensity for all elves he knew were shorter and more fragile looking than Ilum; Still, she bore with elegance her every detail: her long elvish ears, her strenght, her bluish skin, her piercing and disturbingly red eyes, her light and melodious voice and specially, the sacred symbol of the god that her order followed. Yes, there was power in Ilum, a deep and ancient power. Helmut would do right to remember it.

The half orc still attributed Ilum's silence to the events on the _Lavondiss_ woods, even he felt stil la bit shamed to the root about it. He kept on observing his elven companion, he still could not figure her out, or how to get her out of her silence, she had been quite chatty before the woods. But of course, the fact remained that what happened on _Lavondiss _might send waves of repercusion that could even bring her order to its knees. But for the moment, Helmut had to find a way for her to focus on the task at hand. Her days as a paladin were behind, she now was part of the Imperiuum pacification effort.

"Finally" saud Krista, still laughinf softly. "This riding horse thing does not agree with me at all" she continued as she rose from her modified stirrups that allowed her to plant her small legs firmly on the saddle. "Here we can definitely make a start" she added as she stretched her back and arms. She tried to sound convincing, even hopeful for what they had to find. But for what Orsic, _Grandmaster_ of the _Order of Ix_ had told her, her hopes diminished with every step taken southwards. At the very least, she did not expect the thing to be found so easily as the Emperor presumed.

They had been gioven the order to exhaust every resource available, remembered Krista, but the nature of the object that they had to look for had only been known to Orsic, and one or two high ranking members of the _order of Ix_. So Krista had done only what was natural; she pestered Orsic to no end until the old mage gave up some of the knowledge he possesed. "This thing has to be found" Orsic had told her, "Even at the cost of you or your companion's lives." This had not made Krista the happiest of gnomes, and she was dangerous when she was not being the happiest of gnomes. She hadn't been the happiest of gnomes from the time she stood there, listening to the frowning old man until this very moment. Well, she kind of got close to being the happiest of gnomes the other day at the inn, when Helmut and her shared a very tasty ham. In any case, she had never liked the way the Grandmaster of her order mixed and managed Order's affairs with Empire's politics. The _Tradicione Stregheria _was the art of _Aradia_, daughter of the Godess who came to the world bearing the mighty gift of magic; and it was certainly not an instrument of imposition, deterrence or political debate. Krista was convinced that in the other six realms of the one and only world, the different coventants and orders of magic would agree with her. If she could only reach out to them and be sure of it without it being considered treason... She swore to herself that once this wild goosechase was over, she would seek out the six _Towers of Magic of Ix _on all realms and unite them under one view. A lofty goal that would made her the most definitely happiest gnome on the world.

Helmut dismounted. His weight fell on the grassy making the earth tremble under his heavy leather and steel boots and took Krista out of her thoughts. The half orc was a very thick figure indeed. Over two meters high, greyish skin, hard features that framed a couple of tusks that protruded from his mouth only a bit. He licked his lips with a bluish tongue while observing the grove below, as if tasting a future mouthful of meat. Helmut signaled his companions to dismount and join him on the edge of the hill. "Are you two coming, or you plan on leaving me standing here until God Enkil returns to give you leave? Said the half breed with a playful smile. Krista and Ilum dismounted with one graceful movement and stepped forward to join him. "Look here, you dumb imitation of a mage," The small figure of Krista said with a challenging tone of voice, "respect your elders in the order, that means me, not her" she added pointing to Ilum, "and if in such a hurry, lead the way down. Though I believe we must leave the horses here." She then walked her horse behind the boulder, but stopped dry upon seeing her elven companion remove her hood and glare at the hollow below; Ilum had a worried look on her face, and she was staring intently as if to pierce the foliage of the trees; her eyes became slits, as if the pale morning light hurt her. Even half opened, it was disturbing staring in to her eyes and see the fiery red colour without pupils contrasting the blue on her skin.

Helmut and Krista stood very still, alert to the elf`s every movement. She was not just any elf. She came from the underground kind. "A deep elf" thought Krista, remembering legend and myths of that people. A chill ran down her spine. It was said that they all could turn in to hideous many legged monsters. She tired her best to not picture Ilum as a black hairy spider, and in doing so she giggled at picturing her exactly like that.. Ilum had seen something below, and when the eyes of an elf spot someting, you better be sure it is there. Kriste immediately threw herself down to the ground and Helmut followed suit. They both observed the elf. Ilum was moving now, towards them. "There is devilry here" she said, "on them, they stink of it" she finished and led the gaze of their companions to the very spot she meant, right between two huge tree trunks among the grove, was the entrance to a cave, there sere several figures moving in the trees near it.

At a second careful loo, Helmut could see that the gaping maw of darkness was no cave at all; the walls seem too symmetrical, and there were columns and debris all around. "Who do you mean elf?" growled Helmut while staring at the foot of the hill. "There, among the trees, can see nine or ten of them. But there are most likely more of them. Some of them already went in to the temple, for that is what the cave is, look at the carvings on the walls!" Ilum said, turning her stare in to Krista Greenmoss eyes, as if silently asking her if she was aware of what those ruins were. Helmut made an effort to catch a glimpse of the figures shadowed by the trees and pay no attention to Ilum's silent questioning the gnome. "Are those ruins? so that's why the map had this place marked? What in the name of Enkil are we looking for in old ruins of temples?" He finished his question addressed at Ilum. The elf jumped at the orc directly questioning her. Be it half orc or full orc, they are all the same evil things. She shaked her head. "That's all I know, but the informants of my order that are planted in the imperiuum tell tales. They assure our high priest that this whole endeavour is some sort of scheme concocted by the order of _Ix _along with the Emperor, with less than noble intentions."

Krista was trying her best effort at a nonchalant attitude, failing terribly. Ilum never took her eyes off the small round violet eyes of the gnome. "I need to know our exact orders, small one, and only you conferred with Orsic and the Emperor about all this. The maps, letters and instructions were given to your care, so it is time you unveil the secrecy, it is no more time for it". Krista looked surprised and taken aback. Her round eyes opened by inches to appear big purple plates on her face. "Is this deal involves murder, you creatures can go on without me, or work under my orders and conditions, for the divine law must be observed at all times." Helmut immediately glared and growled at the elf woman. His anger rose and the imperial pride flowed trough his face. "She-elf, you cannot go against direct orders from the Emperor..." he started in a menacing voice; then fell silence as awe took him at seeing the snake like fast movement of Ilum. She reached for her double bladed longsword, and in a flas, she had the business end of it touching the half orc's lips. He felt the cold tip of the steel.

Blue tempered steel from the dwarven mountains, the double bladed sword has always been a distinctive symbol of the priesthood of Innana, and her armed paladins. "Do not dare to tell me what I can or cannot do, orc." She said this last word with as much contempt as she could muster. "My work in the world is the work of the Godess, not of some Emperor, so thread carefully and choose your next words wisely". At seeing this, Krista, standing between the two companions, began to tear up; Her eyes became watery and a dread was upon her. "No, Ilum, wait, put that thing away 'cause it looks it may put someone's eye out" She placed her hand on Ilum's blade and began to lower it. "I was planning on let you all in, but I first I had to make sure you were who you claim to be, and I was hoping for the right time, you see... its just,... " The gnome continued babbling while playing with her adorned staff and her eyes darted from one place to another, every tinker, whistle and bell she had attached to her raggedy outfit was tinlking and her free hand played with a couple of bird's skulls she had hanged around her waist, next to the small bags of ingredients and components necessary for her art. "...its just... eh, they told me not to tell you.. and eh... they said I was in charge... and, and, that it didn't matter if we all died, but I said, "look here mister! whaddaya mean by someone dies, i don't like those tales·, and I don't care what the _scepter of Vril ya_ does for..." At this, Krista immediately put both of her hands to her mouth, letting her small adorned staff fall to the ground tinkling with bells.

Helmut slapped the blade of Ilum's sword away with a strenght that made the elf almost spin. He then stroked the little gnome's hair with a massive dark claw of a hand while offering his most comforting smile showing all fangs and tusks; his face hard features softened for a brief moment. His own wooden staff hanged from his back as he bent down to speak to Krista in the eye. "Be calm midget, do not cry. You are not betraying any secret or any one person. We are all on the same side here; the elf just wants to make sure we do not use means opposed to the beliefs of her order, it is important for them to fulfill the will of Innana at all times, am I correct Ilum?" He asked the elf not taking his eyes off Krista, but infusing in to his voice a veiled menace. Helmut might not be as fast as the elf with weapons, and he knew it, so his left hand slowly slided down to his own belt, looking for his small ingredient bags. Illum nodded with a serene gesture. Krista smiled, and relaxed. She dried big round tears from her cheeks and immediately felt light-hearted and delighted to see they were all friends now. It was hard for Krista to smile after the last three days, specially after the horror on the woods. In fact, once she thought about it, it was hard for her to smile after all she'd been through to get to where she was now. That did not mean she should stop trying.

Wiping her eyes and cheeks, Krista remembered her days before the magic tower and the order of _Ix; _She had been born under the Greenmoss house under the eastern mountains and grew up in his family's state; but on being born under that clan, she had indivertibly inherited a feud, as all newborn gnomes do, for which they had not guilt at all except having a certain cast surname from the elder days: Underwood, Greenmoss, Coveburrow, Stonecutter; it did not matter where your affections lie, if you had one of these cast names, you were destined to have enemies amongst the rest of the gnomic population for the rest of your life. The Greenmoss clan was under heavy threats by the time she was an infant, and her family decided to move her out of harm's way by letting her out in to the world, exiled from the underground realms. In an instant, Krista saw her life pass before her eyes; she saw all the hard moments and soft joys alike she had to endure in order to reach her goal of gaining acceptance at the Magic Tower of the order of _Ix._ Her inborn talent for the arts was never a problem, she had shown very early feats of amazing power, and she was endowed with a hunger and joy of practicing the magic arts that come too well to all members of her race. Sometimes too well, Krista had thought on more than one occasion; and she also had seen and disapproved the lack of seriousness in which most gnomes squandered the craft.

"No Ilum," Krista finally said to the elf once her tears were dry. "This does not suppose to involve any murdering or killing, though it is dangerous," she sighed and continued, "Se hunt for a most devious and powerful artefact; some sort of staff or sceptre, that belonged to am out of control mage that inhabited these parts around the time the Goddess gave us her daughter to inherit the arts. I do not know what the order of _Ix_ wants with it, but I am convinced this is a suggestion of the Order to the Emperor as means to end the threats of the six realms and the inner threat of dissension; and not, as you say, for less than noble purposes". Krista's face darkened; as if remembering a particularly ugly toad she squished that one time; "Although that poor mock of a mage", she continued, "that troll brain has been that licks the boots of general Tordek of the _Imperiuum, _that Orsic..." Helmut stomped the ground at this, "Midget!, be careful what you say now, focus and remember that Orsic is also my superior in the order, as well as my personal teacher", said the half orc managing to keep his voice under control, more than his temper.

"Ah, well," continued the gnome, "regardless of our views on Orsic, the point is that the letters they gave me also warned us against a group of marauders operating in this area, and if possible, shutting them down is part of our assignment;" She stopped for a second to look at her companions. None of them looked particularly amazed. "You must know them, they have scoured the land for a time now, they hit commercial routes and travellers along the southern borders of the empire, nor far from here, have you heard of this, eh?, eh?" The small gnome seemed to have recover her good spirits, in Helmut's opinion; and he liked her best when she was sulking, for then she was quieter. Both Helmut and Ilum nodded their affirmatives, and Krista continued, "Well, they told me these bandits belong to the Black Whip, do you know this, eh? good, this will make it easier then; so the Black Whip dudes told these marauders to help them look for a certain device, or so the rumours I gathered said, and so they said yes, and so we are now told to..." Krista's words became a nonsense, and her voice a whisper to Ilum's ears. She stopped listening at hearing "Black Whip".

Ilum had heard of them before. Violent attacks all over the Empire were being meticulously done by these renegades; a rag tag of murderous beings who did not show more insight, or political inclinations than a two headed Ettin swingin a mace among the trees; but equally dangerous and deadly; they had commited murders and slaughters on villages and imperial garrisons just along the borders; thus allowing for the six realms to encroach the _Imperiuum_ with renewed force every day. Such attacks were done with no ideals behind, no manifesto or reason; senseless violence destined to seed chaos. "The Black Whip is in on this", thought the elf while Krista continued to speak endlessly. And in a second, Ilum's vision became a blur...

"...we should kill them all, but I don't know Helmut, these stinks of hidden gnome, I mean, those fellows down there look pretty decent and poor, eh?, more peasants than renegades or marauders if you ask me. I do not enjoy killing raggedy people, but well... the orders... this just makes it so hard to be working for the armada". At this point, Krita lifted her tinkling staff, and raised her free hand to the skies, as if making a speech from within her soul, "I've always thought that the order of _Ix _should not be mixed in with political or military business, and should be completely independent from the Empire's chain of command; but Orsic, that snivelling toad..." Krista kept on bad mouthing and yammering without end. Helmut had stopped listening; he was looking at Ilum, who appeared to be in a trance. Helmut snapped his fingers in front of her; at that moment, the fog covering the elven eyes dissipated. Then Helmut took Krista's arms, both of them, in one big clenched hand and lowered them, forcing her to lower her tone of voice as well. "Look midget, orders are to be followed. It is a matter of loyalty, dear girl; but loyalty is not free, it is earned; and the _Imperiuum_ has earned mine." Stated the burly half-breed, "And enough with your trances Ilum, whatever Innana is making you see, you must leave it for another time" he added as he tussled Krista's hair with a big gray hand.

Yes, the _Imperiuum _had won his loyalty; still, these two companions at his side felt like a different story altogether; with them, loyalty seemed to be there, since the moment they left the more civilized inns near the capital; from the first beer and barley draught shared on the journey. The half orc had never encountered peers so different and yet so alike to his own heart.

Ilum pointed at the grove below again. Helmut and Krista turned towards it as well. They saw the group of men in the front of the cave entrance light torches, and make ready to go in to the gaping darkness of the ruins entrance. Helmut could now see them clearly; and he could also discern the true nature of the cave; it was definitely the entrance of some ruined temple or underground stronghold; and those symmetrical rocks on the entrance were nothing of the sort, they were clearly carved pillars of white polished stone. He could se the carvings now. Beautiful designs, unknown to him, except by a few words, a few runes in the language of magic that sent the hairs on the back of his head in to a frenzy.

None of the three riders could know the real name of the ruin that lied in ront and below them. And even if they knew the name, it would mean nothing to them, not even to learned Krista Greenmoss. _Vril Ya_, a name of incommensurable years, alien to the world, estranged, fallen from the empty spaces between the stars. By dark roads it crawled; leaving death and defiling in its trail, as well as an inheritance of abominations, monstrosities and nightmarish creatures crafted by its dark existance, that even now crawled beneath their feet on the hill; Creatures that swallowed dark and excreted death. Would they even guess the story if its long and terrible name, the three companions would surely mount their tired horses and galloped all the way back to Turania, empty handed, defeated but grateful to still receive the warmth of the sun on their faces.

Now, on the crest of the hill called _Hügelgrab_ in ancient times, without thinking twice on it and with only a conspirator's look on her eyes, Krista Greenmoss started to make her way downhill, towards the first of the trees on the grove with a quick and stealthy step. The gnome slung her adorned staff on her back sliding it in to a carefully decorated sheath given to all graduates of the craft by the elder mages of _Ix_; then, after a few steps, from a hidden leather sheath under her countless layers of robes and rags, she drew a pair of long slender silver daggers engraved with runes, that curved viciously on the tip; if her companions were surprised at the appearance of her daggers, she did not notice it. Helmut and Ilum observed with disbelief the bold and silent steps that the little gnome mage took farther and farther from them. The yellow grass covered Krista up to her chest, and made it easier for her to hide and sneak her way down hill to the trees on the hollow.

Upon reaching the first of the tree trunks, Krista slammed her back on one of the cold grey trees, she crossed her daggers on her breast, and slid down to a crouching position. She waited until her heartbeat returned to normal. She breathed in the cool air of the grove. It was getting colder and humid down there, she could see her breath in puffs of vapour in front of her face now. The noises of the wind amongst the tops of the trees was hypnotical. The roar of the faraway river vanished; a dark mist made the interior of the grove feel like a walk in a night time woodland; making her remember the horrors of the _Lavondiss_ forest. She pushed that thought away and concentrated. She started t listen. The voices of the men were audible now, being carried by the winds on the treetops; there were also another sort of noises: metal against metal; metal sliding off leather. Weapons being drawn. Krista smiled a mischievous grin. "So, they are not raggedy folk after all." She thought with relief as she observed the intricate engravings on her daggers.

After a few seconds, Krista sharpened her ears to make more sense of the voices. "...dead, is that clear? nothing or no one is to enter these passages behind me." Krista was alarmed at these words. She then listened how the men started to move and walk in to the ruins; "I want three of you at the mouth of the temple and the next three some yards further in to the main passage; among those pillars there. I want look out rounds every five minutes. After one hour, you will hear my voice calling. Follow it down the halls and you will find me again." Said a voice with some eerie authority. Krysta could not help but to think of deep oceans, and water dripping hollow underground caves when she heard it. The voice had a liquid quality to it, like waves crashing on rocky cliffs and underground salty currents. The gnome wondered who could possibly speak in such a voice among that rag tag group of bandoleers; it seemed to Krista that the voice invited her to let herself go in to the depths and admire the wonders she would behold if she would but stood up and cry out, "yes, sir, I will guard the ruins entrance for you, my liege!" She was a bout to declare her loyalty, when other voices woke her up of her daydreaming. "Yer or'ers will be complied with m'lud.", said six or seven men at a time; these voices sounded flat and without texture, rough and uncouth.

A chill ran down the small body of the mage. She shook thoughts of stone men speaking from stone throats. She then looked up the hill, to the point where Helmut and Ilum would be watching her. She could not see them from her position, but she knew they could see her. Then, she turned completely towards the grove and the ruins entrance. From behind the thick cold tree trunk, she could see six men posted on the cave's entrance; then she spotted three more men a little further in to the ruins. She could see it was a grey stone passage, with carefully crafted stone walls and floorings. Then, she saw him. Some steps in to the entrance hallway; a man. A most definitely not human male. He had shoulder long hair. KRysta guessed it was an old humanoid, mainly because of his hair; the colour of such a mane surprised Krista; it was a colour platinum hair that floated on his shoulders. But his gait and standing frame marked him as a young vigorous warrior. A second later, darkness enveloped the strange man along with some other men walking by him.

From atop the hill, behind a great boulder, Helmut and Ilum saw little Krista smile just before she turned her back on them to watch the interior of the grove; that worried them. Then they saw her sneak in to the grove, tree by tree, she used her race's knack for stealth to approach the men on the entrance of the cave undetected. Helmut watched all this with concern; for he remembered when she had seen that sort of smile on her. "On the woods!" he snapped at Ilum, "Ilum, I saw that damnable gnome smile like that last night!" Ilum's face lost all colour; she nodded in alarm, for she had also seen that smile on Krista's face in the woodlands; right before the horror fell on them.


End file.
